Ball State University
1-0,0-0MIVA
Wabash College
0-1,0-0MCVL
Men's Volleyball Starts Season Strong with Sweep Over Wabash College
January 03, 2025 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. -- The No. 5-ranked Ball State men's volleyball team started the 2025 season with a 3-0 (25-16, 25-14, 25-21) sweep over Wabash College Friday night in Worthen Arena.
In his first game with the Cardinals (1-0), Rajé Alleyne led the team with eight kills and one block. Tinaishe Ndavazocheva and Patrick Rogers followed, each recording five kills apiece. Lucas Machado also had an impressive night with 32 assists and three service aces, a new career high.
Set one saw brief momentum from the Little Giants as they took an early 2-0 lead. However, after a little back and forth, the Cardinals started to pull ahead with the help of Machado's three consecutive service aces to give Ball State a 13-8 advantage. The Cardinals continued to build from there, securing the set 25-16 on a Wabash service error.
It was all Ball State early in set two as they took a five-point run to make the score 7-1. The Little Giants had no response for the Cardinals' offense which hit .583 in the frame. In a quick second period, Ball State topped Wabash by a score of 25-14.
The third set saw some new Cardinals out on the court, including freshmen Wil Basilio and Ryan Louis. Ball State established the lead following kills from Basilio and Ryan Bartz and did not let up until it was over. At 25-21, the Cardinal squad secured the sweep with a kill from Bartz.
Overall, the Cardinals served up 10 aces and finished the night hitting .485 (40-7-68).
Ball State men's volleyball will be back in Worthen Arena on Sunday at 1 pm ET as they welcome Trine University.
